Laparoscopic-assisted total colectomy with pouch reconstruction.

Whether in adults or children, benign diseases of the colon are ideally suited for laparoscopic-assisted resection. In children, the most frequent diseases leading to colectomy and pull-through include Hirschsprung's disease, ulcerative colitis, and familial polyposis. Laparoscopic proctocolectomy with J-pouch reconstruction is an ideal approach for children and adolescents who are generally stable but suffer from unremitting symptoms of ulcerative colitis. An early experience with this technique at the Children's Hospital in Alabama is described for children with ulcerative colitis.